Paul Boyd wrote:

Throughout my 20+ years of teaching, I have had the opportunity to attend many conferences, but never one with such crucial information that simply must be shared with all students.
The very first session I attended focused on Hitler’s rise to power and the conditions that existed in Europe and Germany specifically that allowed the Nazi’s and Hitler to gain control of Germany. As a historian I have studied this time period before, but focus on society and specific stories made it much more real. I tried to keep notes, but the talk was so deep in meaning it was impossible to summarize without losing the next phrase.
Touring the museum itself was also very impactful. Artifacts have been donated by survivors or their family’s with a small portion of those actually being on display. There were many items that caused me to pause and sigh, but one really stood out: a board game, that looked similar to ‘Snakes and Ladders’ but was about capturing Jews and removing them from society. Clearly the Nazi indoctrination started very young.
I heard several survivor stories first hand, it was remarkable that they could tell such horrific stories, but still be positive about humanity and in many cases have a great sense of humor. One woman in particular was actually born in Auschwitz at the end of the war. Her mother was amazingly spared from being immediately sent to a gas chamber, but instead suffered the horror of having Dr. Mengele conduct experiments by injecting foreign bodies into her uterus. Miraculously the baby, although considerably undersized survived and was now a great-grandmother standing in front of 70 teachers sharing her story.
There is sense of tremendous responsibility having heard the personal stories over the three days, stories that are sacred and must be honored. It is impossible to find words to accurately describe the absolute evil that these stories have risen from; it is not believable that such horrific acts can be committed by humans on other humans. But the stories are true, and the evil that humanity is capable of continues to impact lives in various spots throughout the world.